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Thursday, 7 December 2017

Better working conditions for seafarers: Council approves agreement between social partners

On 7 December the Council approved a directive which gives legal effect to an agreement between EU social partners in the maritime sector. As a resul…

Better working conditions for seafarers: Council approves agreement between social partners

On 7 December the Council approved a directive which gives legal effect to an agreement between EU social partners in the maritime sector.

As a result of the agreement with social partners, amendments to the Maritime Labour Convention made in 2014 can be incorporated into EU law.

The President of the Council, Mr Jevgeni Ossinovski, Minister for Health and Labour of Estonia, said: "This is an important step forward to improve the working conditions of seafarers and a successful example of sectorial social dialogue. Today we have ensured that seafarers will be better protected across the EU, especially in cases of abandonment. In this day and age, no-one should be left behind without being able to return home."

The objective of the agreement is to protect seafarers' rights in case of abandonment; the agreement also provides compensation for contractual claims for death or long-term disability of seafarers due to occupational injury, illness or hazard.

Seafarers still face abandonment without pay, being left behind for a long time without access to regular food supplies, medical treatment and without any means to return home.

Thanks to the incorporation of the agreement into EU law, seafarers will be covered by a mandatory financial security system. This will guarantee their subsistence means and a safe return home.

Background

The Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) was adopted in 2006. This Convention was incorporated into EU law by Council directive 2009/13/EC implementing the agreement between the European Community Shipowners' Associations (ECSA) and the European Transport Workers' Federation (ETF). In 2016, the latter amended their original agreement. The Commission has consequently submitted the proposed directive in order to align directive 2009/13/EC and the enforcement directive on flag State responsibilities with the 2014 amendments to the MLC.

Next steps

The directive will be formally adopted at a forthcoming Council session.